It Arrived!!!

Some three weeks ago, while I was rummaging through Kate Davies blog Needled I came across a reference of a book which was linked to online book seller page - The Book Depository that has free delivery worldwide (including Croatia!!!) so I preordered myself a gift.

The book - Mary Jane Mucklestone's 200 Fair Isle Motifs - already arrived!

I can already see that this was one wise purchase and that this book will see a lot of use. Apart from wonderful photos and easily readable patterns it has bunch of other tips, tricks and various interesting stuff (oOoo there are 11 diferent undyed wool colors "produced" by Shetland sheep!) and it is all so well organized my meticulous mind is overwhelmed with joy.

Kimiko - From Our Room To Yours - album promotion

I've listened to Kimiko live once before - preceding  great Notwist show in 2008 and I remember them being fun but not much else so when I came across Andrija Škare's review of Kimiko's new album "From Our Room To Yours" I was a bit stupefied...

They're what?! Can this be true?

... and I have immediately gone and bought digital copy of the album.

It is worth every penny and more.

Third day after the official release there was album promotion party and this is where I've been last night.

It was one great promotion party! On entrance, we were welcomed by lovely angel and demon hostesses who served us some champagne and then ushered us into Their Room (note the album title). Mocvara was set up with cozy sitting areas with small table lights and tables filled with cups and thermoses with tea with rum.

Whole area was warm and aromatic and relaxing as it can get, lighted with red and green spotlights.

And slowly the show started.

First up there was Felon, beat singer-songwriter with artsy lyricised songs and nervous disposition. There is unquestionably some wild beauty in both his word and music (and more so in his appearance!) yet he just isn't my cup of tea, even with some rum in it.

Kimiko show started wonderfuly - brilliant, generous, love and friendship filled, vibrant with effects, life, guest assistance - and progressed famously fulfilling high expectations. They played and talked, called for guests and tea and spread their happiness around. It was utterly pleasing to see to which lengths they have gone to make beautiful show for us and for themselves. There was Lana the cellist, there was Lydia "who really can sing", there was Felon Denis, there were Le Zbor - and they were all wonderful, like ornaments on Kimiko celebration cake...

... and then there was Mad Scientist and then they were over with playing - and there was real CAKE (beautiful, fondant covered Kimiko cake).

Congratulations guys, I wish you many more parties like this one!

Krum Bums at Attack! 23Nov2011

Going to a punk gig the night before two-day business trip of course has its benefits, yet it also fills me with ominous sense of being behind on some concert reviews - so I'm up and on to rectify this immediately.

There was  Krum Bums concert at Attack! in Zagreb on Wednesday night, 23rd November 2011.

My most noticeable ailment being nosiness I came early to watch the crowd gather and musicians adjust and prepare. I found it lovely how there is always something cute to look at and interesting stuff to admire and also food for thought to tuck away for slow digestion later.

The task of being local support went to Passive Aggressive, fun and surprisingly well-sounding hardcore punk band who performed with new drummer - and I could have sworn that their new drummer is, in fact, Black Gust guitarist. It could be that I'm developing some weird recurring motif illness but it seems to me Black Gust have somehow inexplicably found a way to infiltrate my every punk-gig-post so far. In either way - Passive Aggressive were pretty good - their sound firm and assertive, frontman cute and confident and when they finished their set I could honestly say I could have listened to them more.

As for Krum Bums I was both honored and humbled by their act and I feel I should digress a bit to describe the situation: they seem like a big and important enough band, who gets good reviews and has enough (even new) material to be interesting to Zagreb audience yet Zagreb audience chose to sleep in on this November Wednesday. And that is sad and humbling because I almost felt ashamed with our low turnout and tepid reception - especially because Krum Bums kicked ass!!! It felt as if they were shaken by fact that there were around 40-ish people in the audience but after initial dragging of feet they played for 40 of us like they would for a thousand. And it felt good and their music sounded great and I enjoyed their act and a sense of professionalism it was fueled by.

And it is a really nice professionalism as you can see in this great video for song Gasoline from their new album Cut the Noose:

Also, you can check out this clip - for S.O.S. from American Streetpunk and Oi! (the movie):

Hoero Zabimaru!

Let me introduce you to Renji Abarai doll, my daughter's new best toy friend and my own pride and joy (look, it has removable shihakusho!).

As we're both avid Bleach fans some Bleach inspired fashion and aspiration for making Bleach inspired artifacts could not be avoided. It took quite a bit of planning and tinkering with design issues but in the end I knitted cute 4 inch high doll like the one Szayel Aporro Granz made with his resurrection Fornicaras before shamefully losing to Mayuri Kurotsuchi who delivered legendary and wonderful perfection speech on that occasion.

We're both quite pleased with latest results; the only thing Aka Pine is missing on this photo is Zabimaru - something that will be mended shortly.

Paramount Styles at Tvornica 18Nov2011

... Intertwining of concepts...

Lately I had some heated arguments on value/usefulness/practical use of experience. As I am a psychologist that is somewhat of "my turf" and I could win those easily - yet mere cost of winning them could also easily be more than one is willing to pay so one has to tread carefully.

But here... here I can relax.

I went to Paramount Styles concert at Tvornica tonight.

It was an experience so wonderful and - surprisingly! - so easily comparable I am going to tell you about it before I even go to sleep.


Concept one:

You know that feeling when you are freshly in love and you go to sleep in your lover's bed and you are so content, so silently pleased and secure and happy you fall asleep instantly and then immeasurable amount of time passes by and you feel your lover waking you up, wanting you, and it is still dark, still night, and you're filled with desire.

Concept two:

There's a feeling - maybe once in hundred attempts, maybe once in a thousand - when having sex you feel orgasm coming as if from far, far away, like a distant thunder across the plain, and you wait for it and then realize you're already "in the zone" and have topped your best expectation and then, like a tremendous whitewater wave orgasm comes and washes over you - making you ever so alive, from fingers to toes, crescending in unison with the world...

...and the night and that personal happiness universe just lasts forever, never losing its force.

That is what this concert was like.

Sound was just perfect. From first minute Paramount Styles started to play the sound was exceptionally adjusted and crystal clear, Scott McCloud's voice atmospheric and sensual, in control, velvety, at the same time commanding and yearning. They gave everything and then more; From Race You Till Tomorrow through Come to Where You Are, from Amsterdam Again, The Crazy Years, Keep losing You to Paradise Happens - to name just a few of my favorites - it was brilliant performance, vivifying and lustrous.

...and the night and that personal happiness universe just lasts forever,


forever,
 
forever,

forever...

 
never losing its force.

In for Lunch

There is so much going on these days (again) that I'm constantly haunted by thought I'm forgetting something.  But exceptions must be made and indulgences must be provided lest we pressure ourselves into survival without living. With that in mind I had this lunch on Saturday:

This is my favorite lunch - homemade pizza (one sliced half shown here) with third-maize dough, with cooked ham, Podravec cheese, bacon and egg accompanied with tear-provokingly hot pickled pepperoncini and some pitted olives (and frosted lager, of course). I had this on Saturday while rummaging through my mind in search of appropriate words to be put on congratulation card for my best-friend's wedding.

There was also some frantic knitting going on.

Lacy legwarmers for my offspringess.

They are finished already but they were dashed out in such speed I only remembered to take one photo during whole process. I am very pleased how they turned out - they were made on 4 mm dpns and they keep shape and are also stretchy enough so she can wear them over her boots or on top of shoes. They actually came out when I started knitting Rebecca Blair's Oyster Mittens and I noticed I'd like the cuffs to become legwarmers instead of hand warmers. For next attempt at beautiful oyster mittens I think I'll go with thinner yarn and No.3 needles.

Just Thought to Show You - FO: Pile of Greenish Woolen Gloves

As I have already mentioned I had some lovely wool left over after finishing my Ringwood Gloves so I made one more pair of Garter Stitch Mitts - and now I have this wonderful pile of handware just before minus centigrade temperatures arrived.

This is going to be one warm winter for my hands and also these will most certainly be my go-to patterns for swiftly approaching gift season .

Autistic Youth at Attack! AKC Medika

Some two months ago, exactly when I concluded that I'm too old for this shit, my internet friend sent me last.fm invite for Autistic Youth and Defect Defect gig at Attack! and I immediately included it into consideration as a helpful tool in my crusade against my evil ways.


Last night it proved to be wise and well recommended choice.


This gig was a real adventure for me; this is my first time to watch anyone in Attack! and on top of that my interest was very much fueled with Pavlov's recent article with some inconspicuous details about trouble in squatter-y free-culture haven. So I came early and poked my psycho-socially interested nose into all nooks and crannies, wore awkward wide-eyed grin and asked funny questions. I managed to nearly insult few of the natives but I was - all in all - very happy with things seen; there are many honest, endearing and good people there - people troubled with us-and-them, people generaly kind albeit naive. People who will grow up to be kind and honorous - and I liked that.

The gig itself was funny and great, but let me stray a bit more from instant immersion.

There was another punk performance a month ago and it held a prophetic story: on Rikk Agnew gig at KSET while Black Gust were playing one guitar wire pinged into non-existence and that caused a bit of a commotion and a funny verbal altercation between band members which ended with the singer slaping one on the bewildered guitarist saying: "Why the fuck do you need to change wires - are we a punk band or not?!" (while grandpa Rikk was snickering his ass off). Last night, while Black Gust were happily prancing in the front rows, guitare wires were breaking right and left - I never seen a gig so beset with technical difficulties. Both Defect Defect and Autistic Youth had trouble with wires, sound adjustment, microphonic squealing.

But they managed to overcome it all.

It was a gig blotched with technical oddments but energetic and fun neverthelles. Defect Defect were valiant in their effort to overcome adversity - so valiant that there were moments I genuinely felt moved with their candor and forgave them everything instantly. Autistic Youth were a little less troubled with technics and their sound is quite a bit more "professional" and evolved and I loved their set to bits. They played and exchanged places and have shown they thave skills and then some and they were as good showmen as they were musicians. I danced and jumped and hopped and shook my head and squirmed like an epileptic eel and I enjoyed it immensly. I was filled up with energy and enthralled with joie de vivre and high on serotonin from all that activity.

And after it ended I scuttled away through hoarfrost covered streets and into my car and I was home 14 minutes later as all the traffic lights were green on my 11 km drive.

FO: Ringwood Gloves

I've finished these beauties on Wednesday. They were sheer pleasure to knit and I enjoyed it immensely. Also, I have some leftover yarn which I have already paired up with one other lovely leftover to make one more pair of Garter Stitch Mitts. To think that I have bought this yarn for 2.85 $ and free shipping and now I have all these lovely accessories!

Week has been tiresome and beautifully rewarding at the same time; all my efforts to get some processes underway have finally came to fruition and more foundations have been set to build future endeavors upon. I love it :-)

Tonight I'll be celebrating my best friend's wedding - she got hitched yesterday - and today we're gonna eat and drink and dance and party and wish this marriage will be all she wants it to be and more. I feel I should have said "all they want it to be..." but in all honesty I cannot bring myself even to think it. There are so much variables one of them being my overabundance of experience in that department and because of that I can and want to say it as it is - I want her to be happy, because she is my friend and I know her a long time and I know she richly deserves to be dipped in and showered with happiness. I wish he will be the person to get this show on the road and keep it there a long, long time.

Ringwood Gloves

I'm making an effort to track my knitting progress using Ravelry. I'm not very apt/good at it because I usually improvise patterns and knit without plan so this is an experiment to get some preliminary statistics.

Yesterday I started Ringwood gloves and this morning I'd say I'm half-way done. Pattern is straightforward and beautifully written and I really enjoy knitting them. Also, as it happens I had some 4-ply wool lying around as I ordered it from ebay some time ago to see how it would look like and since it is just one big skein I didn't really know what to do with it once it arrived - so this is a great solution. I see already that these will be super-toasty and beautiful.

I also started watching Wolf's Rain while knitting them and I'm loving it. I discerned Yagami Light* as soon as he spoke :-)


* seiyu Miyano Mamoru is voice talent behind both Kiba and Raito-kun

Filigrain Mushrooms